The Front Line
Our communal blog featuring the latest in Civil War news, research, analysis, and events from a network of historians and authors
Published: 5/2/18
Battlefield Echoes: MOPs, MOEs, and Chancellorsville
Library of Congress Kurz & Allison’s depiction of the Battle of Chancellorsville In the aftermath of his army’s defeat at Gettysburg, General Robert E. Lee welcomed a brother of Secretary...
Published: 4/20/18
The Best Civil War Books of 2017
The Books & Authors section of our Winter 2017 issue contained our annual roundup of the year’s best Civil War titles. As usual, we enlisted the help of a handful...
Published: 4/6/18
Beyond the White Man’s Iliad
CATNAP72 / ISTOCK A statue of Robert E. Lee sits atop the Virginia Monument on the Gettysburg Battlefield. The Confederate monument controversy that has exploded in recent months raises fundamental...
Published: 3/17/18
St. Patrick’s Day in the Army
A look at St. Patrick's Day celebrations in the Union army through Lieutenant Josiah Marshall Favill's firsthand observations.
Published: 3/16/18
Extra Voices: Tobacco
Explore the historical use of tobacco during the Civil War through first-person accounts from Union and Confederate troops.
Published: 3/9/18
The Eisenhower Farm during the Battle of Gettysburg
Discover the history of Eisenhower Farm during Gettysburg, where President Eisenhower envisioned a tranquil life after military service.
Published: 2/23/18
The West’s Missing War
URSULA COYOTE/NETFLIX Jack O’Connell and Michelle Dockery in a scene from the Netflix miniseries Godless. As in previous depictions of the postwar West, the Civil War factors little into the...
Published: 2/2/18
A Story from the Trenches
Read Union surgeon John Gardner Perry's letter detailing a tragic incident involving a young lieutenant at Petersburg.
Published: 1/19/18
Close Calls at Beaver Dam Creek
Discover the historical significance of the Battle of Beaver Dam Creek through the personal letter of Private Oliver Willcox Norton.
Published: 1/12/18
Extra Voices: Dog Days of Summer
Read first-person quotes from Union and Confederate soldiers about the intense heat and discomfort that accompanied summer campaigning.
Published: 12/15/17
Civil War Cabbage Stew
Library of Congress Cooking in the Union camp at City Point, Virginia Looking for a hearty meal to help fend off winter’s cold? Try this Civil War-era recipe for cabbage...
Published: 12/1/17
The History Seeker
Jennifer Gleason Library of Virginia archivist Renee Savits In 2010, Renee Savits faced a dilemma. A career archivist, Savits had been with the Library of Virginia for 11 years, rising...
Published: 11/17/17
Extra Voices: Hunger Pangs
Battles and Leaders of the Civil War In the Voices section of the Winter 2017 issue of The Civil War Monitor we highlighted first-person quotes by Union and Confederate soldiers...
Published: 11/10/17
The Best Civil War Books of All Time
What are the best Civil War history books ever published? We asked five top historians to give us their picks.
Published: 11/3/17
Then and Now: How Civil War-Era Doctors Responded to Their Own Opiate Epidemic
USAHEC Nurse Annie Bell tends to wounded soldiers after the Battle of Nashville. Many injured troops, North and South, would become addicted to opiates. Hidden among the many headlines about...
Published: 10/20/17
A Ball’s Bluff Letter
Massachusetts Historical Society Captain Caspar Crowinshield, 20th Massachusetts Infantry On October 21, 1861, Union forces crossed the Potomac River to attack what they thought was a Confederate camp near Leesburg,...
Published: 9/23/17
Extra Voices: Sounds of War
Library of Congress Alfred R. Waud’s depiction of the Battle of Fredericksburg In the Voices department of our summer 2014 issue (Vol. 4, No. 2) we featured soldiers’ quotes that...
Published: 9/15/17
The Search for Orville Wheelock
The Boys in White Julia Wheelock One hundred fifty-five years ago this month, 28-year-old Michigan resident Julia Wheelock learned that her brother, Orville, a soldier in the 8th Michigan Infantry,...